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Jamaican Architecture
What architecture was like in the past: From colonial plantation houses to vernacular structures and contemporary architecture, we take a closer look at Jamaica through its unique architecture. Few buildings remain from Jamaica’s pre-Columbian era, when buildings were made from wood and other local materials unable to withstand the passage of time. But this perishable style of building went out of fashion during Jamaica’s colonization by the UK; Jamaican planters wanted to showcase cultural loyalty to England, and therefore British contemporary architecture was adapted to the tropics. The obsession with British motifs led to the creation of an architectural style marked with elegance, a style that initially adopting Georgian models modified to suit the country’s climatic conditions. Jamaica’s architectural style evolved to include adaptations of baroque and neoclassical styles, before eventually moving on the experiment with post-modern architecture. Today, almost all Jamaica’s sites of architectural interest are located in the capital, Kingston, but it is also possible to spot many sugar plantation mansions spread across the country. From the 1750s until the 1850s, Jamaican Georgian architecture was the most popular style in the country. It combined the elegance of British Georgian architecture with functional objectives appropriate to tropical climate, built to withstand heat, earthquakes, humidity, hurricanes, and insects. Some common features to this style include balustrades, ornate and deep fascia boards, contrasting lattices, and pineapple shaped finials located above rooflines and cornices. Jamaican Georgian quickly became the default style across the island, and was used to design major public buildings, from railway stations to simple domestic houses. Individually, houses differed according to the architect’s personality and the owner’s taste and wealth. In contrast to other houses in the English-speaking countries of the Caribbean, Jamaican houses were elevated using stilts or pilings to give room to air circulation. This was an effective technique to prevent rot, keep the ground floor cool, and to prevent insects, rats, scorpions, and snakes from entering living areas. Devon House in Kingston is a classic example of Georgian style architecture, with its neoclassical form, symmetry and wide, sweeping stairways. What to look out for in present day architecture: Nearly all Jamaican houses have their verandas and porch roofs attached to the principal body of the house; in areas that are more prone to hurricane attacks, a carpenter with some experience would purposely not connect the house’s roof beams to the beams of the porch. This is a technique that prevents the destruction of the house when it is hit by a hurricane, as porch roofs tend to get destroyed. Consequently, a porch roof in Jamaica tends to be built separately, and only loosely attached so that it does not play a vital role. Until the 1930s, mahogany shingles were used to cover the roofs, but were then replaced by cedar shingles from Canada as they became more available. From the mid-1800s onwards, the British immigrants were joined by a wider range of incomers, and architectural styles slowly began to change. The Spanish in particular brought with them a taste for large balconies and verandas, a legacy which can still be seen all over the island today. But as the climatic conditions in Jamaica were not the same as in Europe, the incoming styles had to be adapted to tropical weather. As the 20th century matured, modern building techniques and materials entered the country. The construction of various tall buildings naturally followed, as did the construction of commercial complexes. Architects during this era drew their inspiration from the very thick walls, and much smaller windows of the island’s British forts. To a certain extent, the buildings were also of post-modern style. Some commercial structures trace their inspiration to the international style, which was very popular in the industrial world after the Second World War. For the construction of hotels and private houses, architects drew their inspiration from the existing Georgian houses and also from the wooden cottages that are still standing today.   Section heading Write the first section of your page here. Section heading Write the second section of your page here.